WABE Arts

S. Epatha Merkerson: Legacy, Atlanta and 'Chicago Med'

Thu, 02 Apr 2026 13:34:39 +0000

Emmy and Golden Globe winner S. Epatha Merkerson stopped by WABE Studios after receiving the Black Women Film Network's On Her Shoulders Preservation Award and ahead of a special exhibit at Atlanta's Apex Museum showcasing costumes from her role as Sharon Goodwin on NBC's "Chicago Med." She talked with WABE Arts editor Sherri Daye Scott about what the honors mean, why Atlanta's creative scene is "jumping," and what still surprises her after four decades in the business. The Apex Museum exhibit runs through April

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Gordon Parks 'The South in Color' comes to Atlanta's Jackson Fine Art

Tue, 31 Mar 2026 13:27:13 +0000

enty years after Gordon Parks documented the segregated South for Life Magazine, more than 40 of those photographs are coming to Atlanta. Jackson Fine Art co-owner Anna Walker Skillman traces the gallery's decade-long relationship with the Gordon Parks Foundation — from a meeting in Paris in 2011 to this landmark exhibition, curated by MacArthur Fellow Dawoud Bey. On view at Jackson Fine Art in Buckhead through June 13, 2026.

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Monica Campana: Frida Kahlo and an act of resistance

Thu, 26 Mar 2026 13:56:51 +0000

As Women's History Month comes to a close, Atlanta artist/activist and Living Walls co-founder Monica Campana shares how Mexican painter Frida Kahlo saved her life. Campana , who moved to the U.S. from Peru at 15, her the story of identity, displacement, and why stepping out of her front door is an act of resistance with with WABE Arts and Culture Editor Sherri Daye Scott . 🎧

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Callanwolde's Spring Concert Series returns to Atlanta

Tue, 24 Mar 2026 14:15:04 +0000

🎭 Spring arrives with live music at sunset on Callanwolde's estate grounds. WABE Arts and Culture Editor Sherri Daye Scott talks with Executive Director Andrew Keenan and Operations Director Adam Faust about the 2026 Spring Concert Series: sixteen artists across four outdoor nights, running through May 8th. The lineup spans blues, soul, Americana, jazz, and classic pop.

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Dionne Warwick: What's Feeding Her Right Now

Thu, 19 Mar 2026 14:05:31 +0000

onne Warwick has been making hits for nearly six decades — and she's not done yet. Ahead of her March 20 performance at Atlanta Symphony Hall, the six-time Grammy winner and 2023 Kennedy Center honoree sits down for WABE Arts' "What's Feeding You?" series. She talks classic TV, a new album of Diane Warren songs with emerging artists, and a long-awaited collaboration with Earth, Wind and Fire that is finally in the works.

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Meryanne Loum-Martin: Marrakech, Atlanta, and the Black diaspora

Tue, 17 Mar 2026 13:47:18 +0000

What happens when a world-class cultural destination decides Atlanta is its next partner?

🎧 Meryanne Loum-Martin built Jnane Tamsna, an acclaimed nine-acre boutique hotel in Marrakech, into a gathering place for the global Black diaspora. Now she's bringing that vision to Atlanta. If you care about Black cultural leadership, global art, and what it looks like to build real economic ecosystems across continents, this conversation is for you.

WABE Arts host Sherri Daye Scott speaks with Loum-Martin about the Atlanta artists whose work hangs in her hotel, the impromptu 95-person party that started it all, and why she launched the Diaspora Salon, an annual gathering of thinkers, artists, and entrepreneurs from 27 countries. Plus: her plans for a Black-owned boutique hotel brand and HBCU pipeline she wants to build with Atlanta at the center.

Listen now and follow WABE Arts on your favorite podcast platform for more conversations at the intersection of Atlanta and the world.

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WABE Arts: Fab Five Freddy's 'Everybody's Fly'

Thu, 12 Mar 2026 14:00:00 +0000

Cultural icon Fab Five Freddy brings his debut memoir, "Everybody's Fly" to Atlanta's Tara Theatre. He spoke WABE's Sherri Daye Scott about the worlds that shaped him, bridging hip-hop and downtown New York's art scene, and the curiosity that drove it all.

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Peter Van Sant on the Georgia murder that hooked him

Tue, 10 Mar 2026 14:37:59 +0000

️ A wealthy family. A 10-acre farm in Cherokee County, Georgia. And a murder. Award-winning CBS News correspondent Peter Van Sant covered the Farris family murder case for "48 Hours,” now he’s going deeper with his new six-episode podcast, “Blood Is Thicker: The Farris Wheel.” WABE Arts & Culture Editor Sherri Daye Scott talked with Van Sant about what drew him to the case, what the podcast format unlocks that television couldn’t, and how 42 years of hard-news journalism shape his approach to true crime storytelling.

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Boris Kodjoe: Purpose, Community and What’s Feeding Him Now

Thu, 05 Mar 2026 20:05:08 +0000

Boris Kodjoe has spent 25 years building a career between Hollywood and the world — from “Madea’s Family Reunion” and “House of Cards” to the Full Circle Festival in Ghana to the Kodjoe Family Foundation. At the United Way of Greater Atlanta’s 10th Annual African-American Partnership Leadership Luncheon, he sat down with WABE Arts & Culture Editor Sherri Daye Scott for our What’s Feeding You? series — on what grounds him, what he tells young people about community, and why giving to others is the thing we talk about least and need most.

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Beth Hyland premieres ‘Fires, Ohio’ at the Alliance Theatre

Tue, 03 Mar 2026 15:08:48 +0000

Playwright Beth Hyland on ‘Fires, Ohio,’ a Chekhov-inspired world premiere at Atlanta’s Alliance Theatre through March 22.

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Bet on Your Future: Atlanta’s Lunar New Year casino night

Thu, 26 Feb 2026 21:56:15 +0000

Lunar New Year celebrations often center family traditions, but Atlanta’s Asian American Advocacy Fund is planning a nightlife-style take. WABE Arts & Culture Editor Sherri Daye Scott speaks with Nicole Kang about “Bet on Your Future,” a Feb. 27 casino night at The Supermarket in Atlanta featuring live music, games, local AAPI businesses and an art showcase with 13 Asian American artists.

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Inside Atlanta Opera’s future Beltline home

Tue, 24 Feb 2026 19:55:01 +0000

🎭 The Atlanta Opera has broken ground on a new home along the Atlanta Beltline: the Molly Blank Center for Opera and the Arts, backed by a $27.5 million leadership gift from The Arthur M. Blank Foundation. WABE Arts & Culture Editor Sherri Daye Scott spoke with Atlanta Opera general and artistic director Tomer Zvulun inside the historic Bobby Jones Clubhouse minutes before the ceremony. He explains how the design aims to “break the boundaries of opera,” why the building will be built in dialogue with nature, and what it means for the company to become a highly visible part of Atlanta’s cultural landscape. 🎧

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BAM! returns to SCAD with a celebration of Black love

Thu, 19 Feb 2026 17:00:23 +0000

SCAD’s annual Black History Month concert, “BAM! — Black Artists in Music,” is back. This year’s concert centers on Black love, pairing student performers with guest artists, including Grammy-nominated Avery Wilson and Tony-nominated Amber Iman, for a show designed to land as both performance and collective release.

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Adriane Jefferson on Atlanta arts funding and what’s next

Tue, 17 Feb 2026 15:00:37 +0000

Atlanta’s Mayor’s Office of Cultural Affairs has issued two big signals: expanded city arts funding and the newly announced 2026 Atlanta Jazz Festival lineup. WABE Arts & Culture Editor Sherri Daye Scott talks with Executive Director Adriane Jefferson about her first year in the role — from distributing more than $2 million in grants to building a community-shaped creative action plan. Jefferson also explains why she wants an Atlanta Creative Summit, what “cultural equity” looks like as a group project, and why arts advocacy can’t live only inside City Hall.

Podcast Tags / Keywords: Adriane Jefferson, Mayor’s Office of Cultural Affairs, City of Atlanta, Atlanta arts funding, Atlanta Jazz Festival 2026, cultural equity, creative action plan, Atlanta Creative Summit, arts advocacy, WABE Arts, Sherri Daye Scott

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Broadway Sideways at The Breman

Thu, 12 Feb 2026 17:29:30 +0000

Broadway classics, reimagined in Atlanta. “Broadway Sideways” comes to the William Breman Jewish Heritage Museum, featuring members of the Atlanta Gay Men’s Chorus and Atlanta Women’s Chorus performing songs by Broadway composers in unconventional casting. Musical director Jason Wynn and Breman executive director Leslie Gordon discuss representation, partnership and how Atlanta’s arts community continues to collaborate in new ways

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Spike Lee returns to Atlanta for ‘School Daze’ screening at the Fox Theatre

Tue, 10 Feb 2026 15:42:47 +0000

When “School Daze” premiered in 1988, it was controversial before most audiences ever saw it. Written and directed by Spike Lee, the satirical, music-driven film examines life at Mission College, a fictional historically Black campus, and sparked debate among HBCU leadership even before cameras rolled.

Why ‘School Daze’ faced pushback before filming

Some administrators objected to the film’s portrayal of campus politics, colorism, and internal conflict, concerns that ultimately shaped where and how the movie was filmed.

“It wasn’t a little bit,” Lee said of the reaction at the time. He pointed to Hugh Gloster, who was then president of Morehouse College. “He refused to let us shoot on campus. Also, Spelman said, ‘Hell no.’”

Denied permission to film at his alma mater and at Spelman, Lee instead shot much of “School Daze” on the campus of what is now Clark Atlanta University, as well as at Morris Brown College

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Sarah Higgins on Art Papers’ final year

Thu, 05 Feb 2026 16:36:18 +0000

After nearly five decades of publishing contemporary art criticism from Atlanta outward, Art Papers is preparing for its final year. WABE Arts & Culture editor Sherri Daye Scott speaks with executive and artistic director Sarah Higgins about how the publication is choosing to “end well” — from planning its final issue to preserving its archive and creating space for reflection ahead of 2026. 🎭

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Reconnecting the Man to the Legacy: Inside AILEY

Tue, 03 Feb 2026 16:29:30 +0000

Ahead of a special screening at Art Farm at Serenbe, WABE Arts goes inside AILEY, the documentary that reconnects choreographer Alvin Ailey to his life, voice, and legacy. Director Jamila Wignot and former Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater company member and educator Nasha Thomas reflect on hearing Ailey in his own words, the role of rehearsal as sacred space, and why Atlanta audiences have long embraced his work

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WABE Arts: What’s Feeding You? with James Dean

Thu, 29 Jan 2026 18:09:45 +0000

Quiet mornings, creative resets, and playful reinvention. As Pete the Cat takes the stage at the Center for Puppetry Arts, creator James Dean joins WABE Arts to talk about working in silence, remixing The New Yorker, finding inspiration around Atlanta, and what he hopes young readers carry with them. Hosted by Sherri Daye Scott as part of our “What’s Feeding You?” series

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Coming home to the King of Pop: ‘MJ the Musical’ in Atlanta

Tue, 27 Jan 2026 14:00:00 +0000

‘MJ the Musical’ returns to Atlanta’s Fox Theatre, and for cast members Michael Nero and Zuri Noelle Ford, it’s a homecoming. The two Atlanta-connected performers talk with WABE Arts & Culture Editor Sherri Daye Scott about stepping inside Michael Jackson’s creative process, from rehearsal-room discipline to the collaborators who shaped the Dangerous World Tour. 🎧

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Blue Man Group’s new ‘Rockstar’ comes to Atlanta

Thu, 22 Jan 2026 14:46:25 +0000

Blue Man Group returns to Atlanta with a refreshed national tour — and a new character audiences are seeing in the U.S. for the first time. WABE Arts talks with drummer and composer Ursula Sargent, who performs as the show’s new Rockstar, about the energy behind the role and touring life. 🎧

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“AIM HIGH: Tuskegee Airmen” and the Power of Play

Tue, 20 Jan 2026 18:18:55 +0000

At the Children’s Museum of Atlanta, a new exhibit invites kids to explore aviation history through movement, imagination, and hands-on play. “AIM HIGH: Soaring with the Tuskegee Airmen” blends real artifacts with STEM learning to help young visitors connect to a legacy of flight — and possibility.

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WABE Arts: Broken Promises and Reconstruction

Thu, 15 Jan 2026 15:37:01 +0000

A new permanent exhibition at Atlanta’s National Center for Civil and Human Rights revisits Reconstruction, one of the most misunderstood eras in American history. WABE Arts & Culture Editor Sherri Daye Scott speaks with Chief Programs Officer Kama Pierce about Broken Promises, an exhibition that traces post–Civil War progress, backlash, and the journalists and artists who documented it in real time. From Ida B. Wells to contemporary artist Lonnie Holley, the exhibition asks how history is remembered and what it means to promote human rights and challenge injustice today. 🎧

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WABE Arts: A final frame at Emory Cinematheque

Tue, 13 Jan 2026 14:38:40 +0000

🎧 Film scholar Matthew H. Bernstein marks his final semester at Emory University by curating “Matthew H. Bernstein’s Farewell Favorites,” a 14-film Emory Cinematheque series running through April. He reflects on why communal moviegoing still matters, the care behind archival screenings and the themes of resistance shaping the lineup. 🎬

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WABE Arts: Inside Dad’s Garage’s TheatreSports Tournamen

Thu, 08 Jan 2026 14:31:36 +0000

At Dad’s Garage Theatre, competition isn’t really the point. The TheatreSports Tournament returns Jan. 9–31, turning improv into a fake rivalry shaped by audience reaction. WABE Arts & Culture Editor Sherri Daye Scott talks with ensemble members Ronnie Johnson-Lopez and Amanda Lee Williams about how the tournament works, where it came from, and why live, participatory theater still matters.

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2026 Atlanta Jewish Storytelling Festival

Tue, 06 Jan 2026 14:35:51 +0000

Jewish storytelling is rooted in tradition, but it isn’t fixed. As the Atlanta Jewish Storytelling Festival returns Jan. 8–11, WABE Arts explores how stories move across generations, cultures, and lived experience. Festival coordinator Audrey Galex and featured storyteller Laura Simms reflect on storytelling as a living practice shaped by memory and place.

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Gregor Turk’s ‘Myriad’ at Piedmont Park

Tue, 30 Dec 2025 16:00:58 +0000

A new permanent public artwork is now part of Piedmont Park. Atlanta artist Gregor Turk walks WABE Arts through “Myriad,” his latest mirrored installation near the Meadow entrance off the Atlanta Beltline. Recorded just days after the unveiling, this episode explores how movement, reflection, and shared space shape the experience of public art in Atlanta’s most visited park

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‘A Drag Queen Christmas’ returns to Atlanta

Tue, 23 Dec 2025 14:48:48 +0000

Holiday traditions don’t look the same for everyone. “A Drag Queen Christmas,” now in its 11th year, has become a seasonal ritual for audiences across the country. WABE Arts speaks with host Nina West and first-time tour performer Suzie Toot about how the show blends spectacle, humor and deeply personal holiday traditions — from Hanukkah numbers to chosen-family celebrations on the road. As the tour returns to Atlanta Symphony Hall, the performers reflect on why audiences come back year after year, and why joy itself feels especially meaningful right now.

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WABE Arts: Curating André Leon Talley’s legacy after loss

Thu, 18 Dec 2025 15:14:57 +0000

A final exhibition, finished without its creator. At SCAD FASH in Atlanta, “André Leon Talley: Style Is Forever” reflects years of collaboration — and the challenge of honoring a fashion icon after his death. WABE Arts & Culture editor Sherri Daye Scott spole with Rafael Gomes, creative director of the SCAD fashion museums, about curating Talley’s wardrobe, preserving his exacting standards, and designing an exhibition meant to make visitors feel his presence. From custom mannequins to a deeply personal soundtrack, the show asks what it means to complete someone else’s vision — and get it right.

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Marlon Wayans: Atlanta, Legacy, and Building an Industry

Tue, 16 Dec 2025 17:34:22 +0000

Marlon Wayans has been coming to Atlanta for 30 years—and now he's considering making it permanent. The comedian and actor discusses filming “Scary Movie 6” at Tyler Perry Studios, why Atlanta audiences supported his work before Georgia became a film hub, and what he learned about respect on set from Tom Hanks and Sandra Bullock. Wayans also shares how his brother Keenen's advice to "think like an industry" shaped his approach to building a creative empire—one he hopes to base in Atlanta.

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WABE Arts- ‘La Orquesta’ and the Buford Highway Orchestra

Thu, 11 Dec 2025 15:07:51 +0000

A new PBS/POV Shorts documentary is shining national attention on a youth orchestra rooted along one of Atlanta’s most diverse immigrant corridors. “La Orquesta” follows retired music teacher Juana Alzaga and the children of the Buford Highway Orchestra through a full school year of rehearsals, concerts, and community.

WABE Arts & Culture Editor Sherri Daye Scott talks with Alzaga and filmmaker Monica Villavicencio about what the documentary captures, the trust behind the film, and the logistical challenges families navigate to keep the music going.

Podcast Tags / Keywords: La Orquesta, Buford Highway Orchestra, Juana Alzaga, Monica Villavicencio, Stephanie Liu, We Love Buford Highway, Latino Public Broadcasting, POV Shorts, PBS, Atlanta immigrant communities, youth orchestra, Atlanta arts, WABE Arts

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Jason Orr restores FunkJazz Kafé documentary with AI

Wed, 10 Dec 2025 14:59:19 +0000

Filmmaker Jason Orr returns to his 2011 documentary "Diary of a Decade" with AI-assisted restoration tools that didn't exist when he first captured the early years of Atlanta's FunkJazz Kafé Arts & Music Festival. The festival, which ran for three decades without ever announcing its lineup, featured emerging artists like Erykah Badu, Jill Scott, and Janelle Monáe alongside cultural voices including Cornel West, Dick Gregory, and Jamie Foxx. Orr explains why he used AI to enhance decades-old analog footage, what the technology means for independent filmmakers, and how preservation serves Atlanta's creative legacy.

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Doug Shipman leads South Arts into its 50th year

Thu, 04 Dec 2025 14:56:46 +0000

South Arts — the nine-state regional arts organization based in Atlanta — has named outgoing Atlanta City Council President Doug Shipman as its next President and CEO. Shipman joins WABE Arts to explain why he’s returning to cultural leadership, what the South needs as federal arts funding shifts, and how he plans to support artists across the Southeast in South Arts’ 50th year.

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Ryan Wilson on Mentoring HBCU Founders

Tue, 02 Dec 2025 17:59:40 +0000

🎧 Atlanta entrepreneur Ryan Wilson — co-founder and CEO of The Gathering Spot — joins Season 5 of REVOLT’s “Bet on Black,” where nine HBCU student founders pitch real companies on national TV. WABE Arts Editor Sherri Daye Scott speaks with Wilson about why “Bet on Black”’s focus on young Black innovators matters, how lived experience shaped his role as a mentor and judge, and why visibility can expand what feels possible. He also shares how one student he worked with continues to influence his work beyond the show.

🎭 Stream the full story at wabe.org/arts.

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Atlanta Holiday Classics: ‘A Christmas Carol’ + ‘Nutcracker Suite’

Tue, 25 Nov 2025 15:00:00 +0000

🎭 Two Atlanta holiday traditions return with renewed energy.
At the Alliance Theatre, director Amanda Watkins leads this year’s “A Christmas Carol,” bringing fresh perspective, expanded casting, and a deeper focus on community connections. Then Terminus Modern Ballet Theatre shares its one-hour “Nutcracker Suite,” created for families and first-time ballet-goers, at Serenbe. Artistic and executive director John Welker explains how the company blends classical technique with immersive staging to welcome new audiences. 🎧

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Donnell Rawlings on Comedy, Longevity, and Atlanta

Thu, 20 Nov 2025 15:00:00 +0000

🎤 Comedian Donnell Rawlings — known for his roles on “Chappelle’s Show,” and appearances on the “Kill Tony” podcast and decades of stand-up — returns to Atlanta for a weekend at the Atlanta Comedy Theater.

Rawlings talks with WABE’s Kenny Murry about how he went from club heckler to headliner, why staying funny matters more than labels, and what it takes to evolve across generations of comedy fans. He also shares the Atlanta staple he always seeks out: crispy, all-flats lemon pepper wings.

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WABE Arts: Music, Memory, and Solidarity

Tue, 18 Nov 2025 15:00:00 +0000

Six-time Grammy-nominated folk musician John McCutcheon headlines A Song for Ukraine at the Lawrenceville Arts Center. The benefit concert, organized by Atlanta-area Ukrainian community members and HelpingUkraine.US, raises funds for art therapy, education, and creative spaces supporting children displaced by the war. McCutcheon reflects on solidarity, his earliest union performances, and writing the song “Ukrainian Now,” which reached Ukrainian soldiers on the front lines. Then, a look at how community-driven arts projects in metro Atlanta continue to respond to global conflicts through creativity, storytelling, and collective action.

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WABE Arts: Revolution and Reimagination

Thu, 13 Nov 2025 15:00:00 +0000

The Atlanta Opera reimagines “La Belle et la Bête,” Philip Glass’s hypnotic fusion of live performance and Jean Cocteau’s 1946 film—where music and image merge into one dreamlike experience. Then, a once-banned Black cinema classic returns to the big screen: “The Spook Who Sat by the Door, newly restored in 4K, with insight from Nomathandé Dixon and Natiki Hope Pressley, daughters of the film’s director and screenwriter.

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WABE Arts: Lois Reitzes & Norman Mackenzie on Beethoven’s Ninth

Wed, 12 Nov 2025 20:46:10 +0000

Episode Description): 🎧 WABE’s beloved Lois Reitzes sits down with Atlanta Symphony Orchestra Chorus Director Norman Mackenzie to explore Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 — its revolutionary design, emotional depth, and lasting message of joy. Together, they reflect on the influence of Robert Shaw and how Music Director Natalie Stutzman is guiding a new era of sound at Symphony Hall. Listen as two voices of Atlanta’s cultural scene unpack why “Ode to Joy” still unites audiences nearly 200 years later. 🎶

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WABE Arts: IrishFest Atlanta & Debbie Gibson: Tradition and Transformation

Thu, 06 Nov 2025 15:00:00 +0000

🎧 Two creative journeys converge in metro Atlanta. As IrishFest Atlanta returns Nov. 7–9, founder Teresa Finley and musician Kieran O’Hare share how music and community keep Irish tradition alive. Then pop icon Debbie Gibson joins WABE Arts to discuss her memoir “Eternally Electric,” the message behind her music, and her upcoming author talk at the MJCCA Book Festival.

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WABE Arts: A Dream Deferred & The Man of Many Fathers: Two Atlanta Stories on Power and Legacy

Tue, 04 Nov 2025 15:00:00 +0000

Two Atlanta stages, two perspectives on power and legacy. CNN anchor Abby Phillip talks about her new book “A Dream Deferred: Jesse Jackson and the Fight for Black Political Power” ahead of her conversation with Ambassador Andrew Young at the Atlanta History Center. Then comedian Roy Wood Jr. shares what inspired his “The Man of Many Fathers” book and tour and why Atlanta will always be home.

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WABE Arts: Soul, Stage & Civic Sound: Ruby Velle’s Call to Action & Brian Jordan Jr.’s Riley Mixtape

Thu, 30 Oct 2025 14:00:00 +0000

Atlanta’s creative pulse runs through two new releases.
🎶 Soul frontwoman Ruby Velle & The Soulphonics step up for democracy with “Step Right Up,” a rallying cry for joy and civic engagement ahead of Election Day 2025.
🎭 Then actor and musician Brian Jordan Jr. blends theater and sound in “Riley, the Mixtape, “ featuring Big Freedia, Amber Iman, Natalie Weiss, and Olivia Lux in celebration of faith, HBCU legacy, and Black joy.

Listen to WABE Arts Tuesdays and Thursdays on Morning Edition and All Things Considered, or anytime at wabe.org/arts.

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WABE Arts: Photographer James Hicks - Moments: Icons, Legends & Muses | Oct. 28, 2025

Tue, 28 Oct 2025 14:00:00 +0000

From the flash of a camera to the rhythm of a beat — Atlanta photographer James Hicks reclaims fashion history through a Black lens in his new exhibit Moments: Icons, Legends & Muses

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WABE Arts: Oakland’s After-Dark Tradition & The Roots’ Black Thought on Creativity

Thu, 23 Oct 2025 15:29:25 +0000

Atlanta, past and present, in one quick listen: editor Sherri Daye Scott visits Oakland Cemetery’s after-dark tradition Capturing the Spirit with designer Sean Fahie and Oakland’s Sandy White (“enlightened, not frightened”). Then The Roots’s Tariq “Black Thought” Trotter shares what’s feeding him ahead of ONE Musicfest—creative discipline, influences, and Atlanta’s soundtrack. Listen to WABE Arts Tuesdays/Thursdays or anytime at wabe.org/arts.

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WABE Arts: Roseanne Cash to keynote Ideas Festival Emory 2025

Thu, 16 Oct 2025 15:05:43 +0000

Ideas Festival Emory turns the university’s Oxford College campus’s historic quad into an open-air forum for conversation, performance, and community learning. Organized by the Center for Public Scholarship and Engagement, the annual gathering invites the public to experience university research in motion — from live music to graffiti art to fireside chats with authors and scientists.

Dr. Ken Carter, who directs the Center, says the goal is to move academic ideas beyond campus walls and into public dialogue. “A lot of what we do at universities is to discover and disseminate knowledge, but sometimes that knowledge is trapped in journals and academic books,” he explains. “This is one of our attempts to share that knowledge with the public.”

This year’s festival explores the theme of resilience, featuring panels and performances on how people adapt and find meaning through change. Singer-songwriter Rosanne Cash headlines the program, joining local scholars and creatives for a day of reflection and exchange.

“I’m hoping that from the different panels, [visitors are] going to find new ways to look at things, new ways to think about themselves and other people — and just really leave with a sense of hope,” Carter says.

Ideas Festival Emory takes place Saturday at Oxford College. Details are available at ideasfestival.emory.edu.

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WABE Arts: Horizon Theatre’s “Heart Sellers” centers Asian storytelling and Atlanta collaboration

Tue, 14 Oct 2025 19:18:41 +0000

When “Heart Sellers” opens at Horizon Theatre, it brings a rarely heard story to the local stage—two immigrant women finding friendship in 1970s America. The play arrives through a collaboration between Horizon and East by Southeast, an Atlanta collective supporting Asian and Asian American artists across disciplines.

Actor and producer Michelle Pokopac, who stars as Jane in the Horizon production, says the partnership reflects a broader shift in Atlanta’s theater scene, one where artists of color are shaping their own narratives and building infrastructure for lasting representation. Directed by Michelle Chan, the production layers humor and history with moments that echo contemporary debates about identity and belonging.

Heart Sellers runs through Nov. 9 at Horizon Theatre in Little Five Points. Details are available at horizontheatre.com.

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WABE Arts: Karyn Kusama on Girlfight's 25th Anniversary & Ice Cube on Legacy and Lyrics | Oct. 9, 2025

Thu, 09 Oct 2025 13:22:46 +0000

In this episode of WABE Arts:

Filmmaker Karyn Kusama reflects on her groundbreaking debut Girlfight twenty-five years later, ahead of its special screening at the Plaza Theatre as part of the Atlanta Film Society’s ¡CINEMÁS! series for Hispanic Heritage Month.

Rapper and filmmaker Ice Cube joins contributor Kenny Murray to discuss his creative process, Atlanta’s influence on hip-hop, and what to expect from his Before Hip Hop tour stop at State Farm Arena.

Catch WABE Arts on air Tuesdays and Thursdays during Morning Edition and All Things Considered on 90.1 FM, or visit wabe.org/arts for more stories.

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Viktor&Rolf at the High Museum and The Crown Classic Hair Showdown at ELEVATE featured on WABE Arts

Tue, 07 Oct 2025 14:35:30 +0000

Hear from curator Thierry-Maxime Loriot on his vision around Viktor&Rolf: Fashion Statements at the High Museum of Art, and from Atlanta creatives Tracee Anderson and Nikki Marshall on taking part in The Crown Classic Hair Showdown during this year’s ELEVATE public-art festival.

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Carolyn Curry, Neil deGrasse Tyson & Atlanta Arab Festival | Oct. 1, 2025

Thu, 02 Oct 2025 18:09:28 +0000

In this episode of WABE Arts:

📚 Author and historian Carolyn Curry discusses her new novel Trudy’s Awakening and her upcoming appearance at the 2025 Decatur Book Festival.

🌌 Astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson shares what’s feeding him ahead of his Fox Theatre talk, This Just In: Latest Discoveries in the Universe.

🎶 Organizer Mouna Abdelhamid previews the 2025 Atlanta Arab Festival, the Southeast’s only Arab cultural festival, happening at the Alif Institute.

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👉 Catch WABE Arts on air Tuesdays and Thursdays during Morning Edition and All Things Considered on 90.1 FM, or visit wabe.org for more stories.

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